Process and apparatus for the decortication of ramie



A. FAURE 2,282,715

PROCES AND APPARATUS FOR THE DECORTICATION 0F RAMIE Filed. Aug. 9, 1939 2 Sheets-Sheet l 3 73 r 1' f 8 l2 I mvEmoR ANDRE FAURE 0 av: ,3 Z?

ATTORNE V5 May 12, 1942. FAURE' 2,2 2,715

PROCESS ANDAPPARATUS FOR THE DECORTICATION OF RAMIB Filed Aug. 9, 1939 2 Sheets-Shet 2 [i1miiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiimiilmmfi i .lliiiiiifiiiiiiiiiiiiijiiiiii iiiiiii:

Ii'|IIIIIUIIUHMMIIIIIIHIHIIIE A II Patented May 12, 1942 PROCESS AND APPARATUS FOR THE DECORTICATION OF RAMIE Andr Faure, Limoges, France Application August 9, 1939, Serial No. 289,130

I In France August 19, 1938 13 Claims.

The invention relates to the decortication of ramie and of other textile stalks or leaves, that is to say the separation of the fibrous part of the ramie stalk from the wood and the pellicle.

The invention is characterized by the following points, considered separately or in combination:

(1) The co-operation, for the decortication, of a thrasher with a resiliently mounted concave.

(2) A stalk from which the ligneous part has already been removed is fed between the thrasher and the resiliently mounted concave;

(3) The stalk from which the ligneous part has been removed is turned in one direction only between the thrasher and the resilient concave, thereby effecting the removal of the pellicle;

(4) The removal of the ligneous part is effected by thrashing on a discontinuous support which is preferably formed by a succession of bars;

(5) The thrashing for the removal of the ligneous part and the thrashing for the removal of the pellicle are effected by one and the same thrasher;

(6) The thrasher is formed of a bladed roll; (7) A part of the height of the blades co-operates with the support composed of bars and the other part with the resiliently mounted concave;

(8) The ramie stalks are given, relatively to the resiliently mounted concave, a reverse movement to that of the bladed thrasher;

(9) The ramie stalks are moved by wedging between a pulley and its driving cable;

(10) The shaft of the pulley is perpendicular to that of the thrashing roll;

(11) During the removal of the pellicle, the stalks are held perpendicular to the axis of the bladed roll by the part of the pulley adjacent the plane which is tangential to same;

(12) The concave for the removal of the pellicle is formed by a cylindrical portion, the generatrices of which are parallel with that of the thrashing roll and which is provided with an edge that co-operates with the end of the blades of said thrashing roll.

An embodiment of the apparatus made according to the invention will be described hereinafter by way of a practical example.

Referencelis had to the accompanying draw ings in which:

Fig. 1 is an elevational view of the apparatus,

' as seen from the end of the thrashing roll;

Fig. 2 is a corresponding plan view;

Fig. 3 is a side elevation;

Fig. 4 is a section along the line 4-4 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 5 is a diagrammatical view of the installation of two decortlcating apparatus;

Fig. 6 is a section along 5-6 of Fig. 5; 1

Fig. 7 is a section through the second pulley of the apparatus showing the position of the stalk as it enters the second apparatus.

The thrasher is formed of a roll I, at the perlphery of which are arranged longitudinal blades 2. The roll I rests, by means of its shaft 3, in hearings in usual manner (not shown) and suitable means are provided for rotating it in the direction of the arrow j in Fig. 1.

Over a part of its circumference, being substantially one quarter thereof in the embodiment shown, the roll of the thrasher l cooperates with a concave l for removing the ligneous part of the stalks, and which is formed by bars 5 that are parallel with the generatrices of the roll l and form a gap with the ends 6 of the blades 2' which is slightly smaller than the average diameter of the ramie stalks to be treated. The bars 5 cover, about one halfof the height of the roll land project a-substantial length outside, as can be seen on Fig. 2. They which a recess is formed in such manner. as to provide a longitudinal edge l0 located a very short distance from the ends 6 of the blades 2. Below the edge ID, the cylindrical portion 9 forms a portion II having a small radius of curvature. The shoe 8 is supported by a brace l2 with the interposition of resilient means, for example coil springs l8 and ll.

A pulley l5 provided with a groove I6 is arranged substantially in the horizontal diametrical plane of the roll I. The axis ll of rotation of the pulley is substantially in the foremost frontal plane is of said roll and the radius of the pulley is approximately equal to the distance between said frontal plane.and the mean zone of the concave I for removing the pellicle. A cable or the like I9 is provided for driving the pulley i5. I

The ramie stalks 20 to be treated are arranged vertically in such a manner as to be wedged between the pulley l5 and the front side 2| of the cable l9 and caused to effect a rotary movement about the shaft II 'in the direction of the arrow F (Fig. 2). The lower part 22 of said stalks is progressively curved by the curved projecting part of the bars 5 and as the pulley l5 continues to rotate, is fed into the gap between the bars 5 and theblades 2, their introduction into said gap being facilitated by the rounded shape of the corresponding end of the blades 2. As the roll I rotates, the ramie stalks bear on the bars 5 and receive the blows of the blades 2 and the wood is thereby broken into pieces which escape through the gaps between the bars 5.

when the ramie stalks thus treated reach the rear endof the bars 5, they are reduced to the state of strips, shown at 23, formed by the fibrous portion covered by the pellicle. As the rotation of the pulley l5 continues, the strips 23 are conveyed into the gap between the roll 1 and the pellicle removing concave I. They are subjected to the blows of the blades 2 and the withdrawing ably favoured by the vibrations set up in the resiliently mounted shoe 8 by the action of the blows of the blades 2. I

.The upper part 24 of the ramie stalks is treated, it necessary, in a similar manner, in a machine operating in combination with the one that has just been described.

Fig. 5 shows the arrangement of the two machines which are particularly advantageous for this purpose. Towards the outlet of the pulley 6. An apparatus for decorticating textile stalks, which'comprises a thrashing roll, a-first concave adapted to co-operate with said roll for removing the wood, a second concave adapted to co-operate with said roll for removing the pellicle, and'a pulley driven by a belt and such that the stalks to be decorticated, which are wedged between the pulley and its belt, are fed between the thrashing roll on the one hand, and successively the concave for removing the wood and the concave for removing the pellicle, on the other hand.

7. Apparatus according to claim 6, having the axis of the thrashing roll and the axis of the pulley perpendicular to each other.

-8. Apparatus according to Claim 6, having the thrashing rolland the pulley so located relatively to each other that the stalks from which the pellicle is being removed are held perpen- P, which has made the ramie stalk pass through the machine M that has already decorticated the lower half thereof, as has just been described, said stalk is wedged, by its decorticated part, between a second pulley P and its driving cablec (Fig. 6). The pulley P is disposed at a slightly lower level than the pulley P and rotates in the opposite direction. to the same. The ramie stalk then completely leaves the pulley P and the nondecorticated part'fl hangs below the pulley P which holds the stalk by wedging the strip. The pulley P thus feeds the non-decorticated portion 24 towards a second machine M which is similar to the first and which eiiects the decortication thereof.

Having now fully. described my invention, I claim:

1. An apparatus for decorticating textile stalks, which comprises a rotatable thrasher for removing the wood, and a resiliently mounted concave having a plurality of operating parts arranged in an arcuate group and individually according to the generatrices of the thrasher for removing the pellicle.

2. An apparatus for decorticating textile stalks, which comprises a thrashing roll, a rigid concave adapted to co-operate with said roll for removing the wood and a resilient concave adapted to cooperate with said roll for removing the pellicle.

3. Decorticating-apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the portions of the thrashing roll which are respectively involved in the removal of the wood and in the removal of the pellicle are distributed upwardly over said roll.

4. An apparatus for decorticating textile stalks, which comprises a thrashing roll, a concave for removing the wood, formed by a succession of longitudinal bars partially surrounding the thrashing roll, and a resilient concave-for removing the pellicle, adapted to co-operate with said thrashing roll.

5. An apparatus for decortlcatin'g textile stalks, which comprises a thrashing roll, a concave for removing the wood, a concave for removing the pellicle, and means for feeding the textile stalks successively between the thrashing roll and the concave for removing the wood, and then between the thrashing roll and the concave for removing the pellicle.

dicular to the axis of the thrashing roll by the part of the pulley adjacent'the plane which is tangential to same.

9. An apparatus for decorticating textile stalks, which comprises a device for removing the wood, a multi-bladed thrashing -roll, and a resiliently mounted concave adapted to co-operate with said thrashing roll for removing the pellicle,.said concaye being formed by a cylindrical portion, the generatrices of which are parallel with those of said thrashing roll and which is provided with an edge adapted to co-operate with the ends oi the blades of said roll.

. 10. Process for the decortication of ramie and analogous material, which consists in carrying out the decortication in two stages, and in the first stage stripping the woody fiber, and in the second stage stripping the cuticle by moving the textile stem discontinuously by traction, on the one hand, and by elastically squeezing the same, on the other-hand.

11. Process for the decortication of textile stems or leaves, which consists in carrying out the decortication in two stages, and in the first stage stripping the woody fiber, and in the second stripping the cuticle by moving-the textile stem dlscontinuously by traction, on the one hand, and by elastically squeezing the same, on the other hand, in rapidly intermittent manner.

12. Process for the decortication of textile stems and leaves, which consists in carrying out the decortication in two stages, and in the first stage stripping the woody fiber, and in the second stage stripping the cuticle by moving the textile stem or leaf discontinuously by traction, on the one hand, and by elastically squeezing the same on the other hand by passing the stem or leaf between a paddle heater and a resiliently 

